by Genn Shaughnessy
How many of you got ready for an event in your bathroom, only to see yourself once you got there and ask yourself;

"Did I get ready in front of a mirror?"

We've all done it. And I know a bunch of you have done it, because I see it all too often. It's annoying, and sometimes maddening even. It's all because of lighting, either too bright or too low. To avoid this there really is a very simple and somewhat inexpensive solution; Good lighting and dimmer switches.

Everything on your face and hair from every angle should be light up, with no shadows. It should be equally distributed so it's light up evenly, again with no shadows. This doesn't mean you need to spend thousands of dollars installing ceiling lights and more windows. It just means you need to have ample lighting in front of your face. Ideally a strip above and on the sides of your mirrors.

Lightbulbs; be sure your bulbs aren't a funny shade of yellow, blue or other weird hues. It should be a clear or white bulb. The same goes for the glass hood over the bulbs. If it's colored, it will throw off that color onto your face and hair giving you a false idea of what you and your MUAH look like. You also want to do a little research with the bulbs each lamp takes. How often and are they easy enough to replace? Are they a custom order or are they in stock? Are the bulbs themselves in your budget?

Wherever you get ready and look at yourself in a mirror, it's important to mimic the lighting you will be in. If it's an evening wedding or gala, it's safe to say that you'll be in a dimly lit venue with candles everywhere so it's important to go heavier on the makeup and worry less about flaws in your hair. If it's a corporate fundraiser during the day, it's probably going to be at a banquet hall, light up so go lighter on the makeup and pay more attention to the details of your hair. Again, mimic the light you'll be in. Dim the lights for night and darker spaces, Brighten up the light for day time events in full fluorescent.

Lowe's Has some great options, ranging from a basic dimmer with on and off switch at $19 all the way up to $129 for one with a ceiling fan dimmer and a remote. I did a search on the Lowe's main site and came up with 4 to compare, so you can see your options. Now all you need to do is get it installed, safely and by someone who know's what they're doing.

I literally had to pull myself off the computer when looking up Vanity Lighting and station inspiration. I've already spent 4 hours peaking at photots, so you can imagine the unlimited amount of options you'll encounter. So get a Pinterest or Houzz Board started and get going to better MUAH!

Genn’s ability to produce various types of MakeUp Artistry and Hair Styling for HDTV, Photo and mixed media demonstrates her amazing eye for detail and her ability to think outside the lines of conventional thinking. Genn's vast knowledge of cosmetics & beauty tools shines in writing and producing beauty segments, blog posts and educational tutorials.

Genn Shaughnessy has numerous film, print and web credits to her name that include FOX, People Magazine, Teen People Magazine American Idols Live and Trading Spaces. She combines tremendous talent and make-up savvy with a plethora of experience and the ability to deliver uncompromising quality of work to every professional work setting.